AT&T Now Helping Track Your Kids

If you’re a drone parent, or are hoping to become one, AT&T has a product for you.

The wireless carrier is working on a watch that will act as a tracking device for your kid. The watch, which comes in several bright colors, will link with an app on your phone to show your child’s location. If junior wanders outside designated Safe Zones, or into prohibited areas, you’ll be notified.

The watch, which is made by Filip Technologies, can be programmed to call and receive texts from up to five phone numbers. There is a red emergency button on the side that when pressed for three-seconds will notify parents it entered emergency mode and begin calling each number until someone picks up.

You could see how that could be useful. The device addresses the age old questions of how to trust children before you’re really sure they’re ready and how to call them without buying them that cellphone they keep nagging you about. It also makes it easy to shift from helicopter parent mode — always hovering — to one based on more surgical intervention.

The watch is intended to “solve a real problem for parents and makes their lives easier,” said Chris Penrose, senior vice president, Emerging Devices at AT&T Mobility.

AT&T, which will be the exclusive carrier for the device, didn’t say how much the watch or its monthly subscription will cost. The battery will last up to 48 hours. It is expected to go on sale this fall.

“Our goal with FiLIP has been to create a product that empowers kids to explore their world while remaining in touch with those who care about them the most,” said Jonathan Peachey, chief executive of Filip.

The watch launch comes amid the carrier’s push to get more devices connected to its network as cell phone penetration may be nearing its peak. As of 2012, there were more active cell phone plans than people in the U.S., according to industry trade group CTIA. AT&T has more than 107 million subscribers connected to its network, 15 million of which are devices other than cellphones and tablets.

Last month, AT&T announced it will be the exclusive carrier for the Pebble Smartwatch. The $150 watch was launched using funding on Kickstarter, a website that facilitates crowd funding. Using Bluetooth, the watch funnels notifications from Google’s Android and Apple’s iPhone devices and runs apps.